Tetris from Electronic Arts is now available to download via the N-Gage client showroom. The name Tetris will be familiar to most game players, but you can still check out the specifics in our review of the N-Gage implementation of the game here. We're not sure the masses will be rushing to download this one, especially with the likes of S-Tris available for free.
Read on in the full article.
In case you're wondering Block Breaker still has the world's worst demo. I managed 12 bounces in the 30 seconds the demo lasted...
Yeah, the demo is pathetic, completely pointless.
Here's my review in a nutshell if you can't be bothered to read the whole thing: Block Breaker Deluxe is great if you like Breakout/Arkanoid, but boring if you don't.
What I don't understand is why they do not keep the n-gage content quality level on par with the initial offerings - the Fishing game (On Hook?) and the F&F wannabe titles Asphalt3 ? I mean, it's not much fun to download 7M n-gage wrapper just to run some lame 2d games from 90s (80s?) era. And what worsens the experience is that we still have the "Download!" (with an exclamation sign, expecting us to get excited, not less) application thru which you might be able to get all the similar games and more. Not quite clear where to expect what and why. A fragmented user experience.
What I would expect is n-gage to be for really top 3-d multiplayer (wifi ad-hoc, anyone?) games, on par with x-box or wii experience, while keeping Download! for lesser top-of-the-art, but this is not happening...
I mean, it's not much fun to download 7M n-gage wrapper just to run some lame 2d games from 90s (80s?) era.
Excuse me, but a lot of people LOVE to play 2D games from the 1980s. 😊 You can't just say 2D games are bad and 3D games are good, it's not that simple.
There are 3D graphics-intensive games for people who want them (Creatures Of The Deep, Asphalt 3, System Rush etc) but some people prefer 2D stuff, so there are those games as well, and a lot of people including myself love both 3D and 2D games.
Tetris on Java has sold very well as a phone game, loads of people bought it probably because they remembered being addicted to it on their Game Boys twenty years ago. I don't personally think EA's version is particularly good, but I can see why so many people buy it, and it makes sense for them to release an N-Gage version.
Gaming platforms have to cater for a lot of tastes, it's not just about graphics or showing off the hardware. Look at the DS and Wii, they have rubbish graphics compared to their rivals but people buy them for the varied gameplay.
And it's important to remember that N-Gage is not a games console, most people who use it would probably have bought their phone anyway even without any games. If you want a dedicated gaming system, get a PSP or a DS.
What I would expect is n-gage to be for really top 3-d multiplayer (wifi ad-hoc, anyone?) games, on par with x-box or wii experience, while keeping Download! for lesser top-of-the-art, but this is not happening...
Funny you should mention those consoles, because if you look at the Xbox and Wii they have very popular retro gaming scenes.
Virtual Console on the Wii sells nothing but old 1980s and 1990s 2D games, and loads of people have used it.
Xbox Live Arcade has a similarly low-tech approach to gaming with loads of retro titles and remakes of retro titles. One of the Xbox's best-sellers is the original version of Pac-Man, because people love to go back to their childhoods.
Anyway, it's quite strange to me that adult people waste time for something they should have got tired of in childhood. Why not free one's mind for something NEW? There's always something new if you look far enough.
Well it's just my humble point, I don't push it on to everybody.
In fact, I think "addictive gameplay" is the key - people will play anything that has it. Whether "addiction" is right or wrong - who am I to judge? 😊
Anyway, it's quite strange to me that adult people waste time for something they should have got tired of in childhood. Why not free one's mind for something NEW?
Because nostalgia can be great fun! 😊
If you're a grown-up and your body is falling apart and you have mountains of bills to pay, it's nice to be able to relive a time of your life when you didn't have to worry about work or health or mortgages.
There's also the point that if people have the choice of two brands, they tend to go for the one that's more familiar to them. Tetris is a game almost everyone knows, so if people are buying their first N-Gage game I could imagine a lot of people buying it, the same way they might buy Coca-Cola in a supermarket.
In fact, I think "addictive gameplay" is the key - people will play anything that has it. Whether "addiction" is right or wrong - who am I to judge? 😊
That's definitely the key, it doesn't matter if a game is simple or complex, it has to make you come back for more.
When I first tried SimCity on the PC I thought it would be a boring educational game, because it seemed so complicated and the subject was so dull. But it was actually very addictive, I couldn't stop building and altering my city.
With simpler games like Snakes it's the same thing, it's hard to stop playing. Snakes was great cos the learning curve was so well judged, the levels got more difficult at just the right pace.